New King James Version
Isaiah 21:8
8Then he cried, “A lion, my Lord! I stand continually on the watchtower in the daytime; I have sat at my post every night.
Isaiah 21:8 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And he cried, A lion: My lord, I stand continually upon the watchtower in the daytime, and I am set in my ward whole nights:
- New International Version (NIV)And the lookout shouted, “Day after day, my lord, I stand on the watchtower; every night I stay at my post.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Then he who saw cried out: "Upon a watchtower I stand, O Lord, continually by day, and at my post I am stationed whole nights.
- New Living Translation (NLT)Then the watchman called out, “Day after day I have stood on the watchtower, my lord. Night after night I have remained at my post.
Context of Isaiah 21:8
6For thus has the Lord said to me: “Go, set a watchman, Let him declare what he sees.” 7And he saw a chariot with a pair of horsemen, A chariot of donkeys, and a chariot of camels, And he listened earnestly with great care. Then he cried, “A lion, my Lord! I stand continually on the watchtower in the daytime; I have sat at my post every night. 9And look, here comes a chariot of men with a pair of horsemen!” Then he answered and said, “Babylon is fallen, is fallen! And all the carved images of her gods He has broken to the ground.” 10Oh, my threshing and the grain of my floor! That which I have heard from the Lord of hosts, The God of Israel, I have declared to you.
Read all of Isaiah 21Isaiah 21:8 word by word
וַיִּקְרָ֖א אַרְיֵ֑ה עַל־מִצְפֶּ֣ה׀ אֲדֹנָ֗י אָנֹכִ֞י עֹמֵ֤ד תָּמִיד֙ יוֹמָ֔ם וְעַל־מִ֨שְׁמַרְתִּ֔י אָנֹכִ֥י נִצָּ֖ב כָּל־הַלֵּילֽוֹת׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And he criedקָרָאqârâ' · to call: call outH7121
- A lionאַרְיֵה'ărîy 'aryêh · lionH738
- My lordאֲדֹנָי'ădônây · LordH136
- I standעָמַד‛âmad · to stand: standH5975
- continuallyתָּמִידtâmîyd · continuallyH8548
- upon the watchtowerמִצְפֶּהmitspeh · lookoutH4707
- in the daytimeיוֹמָםyômâm · by dayH3119
- and I am setנָצַבnâtsab · to standH5324
- in my wardמִשְׁמֶ֫רֶתmishmereth · chargeH4931
- whole nightsלַ֫יְלָהlayil lêyl layelâh · nightH3915
Cross-references for Isaiah 21:8
- Isaiah 5:29Their roaring will be like a lion, They will roar like young lions; Yes, they will roar And lay hold of the prey; They will carry it away safely, And no one will deliver.
- Jeremiah 4:7The lion has come up from his thicket, And the destroyer of nations is on his way. He has gone forth from his place To make your land desolate. Your cities will be laid waste, Without inhabitant.
- Jeremiah 25:38He has left His lair like the lion; For their land is desolate Because of the fierceness of the Oppressor, And because of His fierce anger.”
- Jeremiah 49:19“Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the floodplain of the Jordan Against the dwelling place of the strong; But I will suddenly make him run away from her. And who is a chosen man that I may appoint over her? For who is like Me? Who will arraign Me? And who is that shepherd Who will withstand Me?”
- Jeremiah 50:44“Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the floodplain of the Jordan Against the dwelling place of the strong; But I will make them suddenly run away from her. And who is a chosen man that I may appoint over her? For who is like Me? Who will arraign Me? And who is that shepherd Who will withstand Me?”
- 1 Peter 5:8Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.
- Isaiah 56:10His watchmen are blind, They are all ignorant; They are all dumb dogs, They cannot bark; Sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber.
- Isaiah 62:6I have set watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; They shall never hold their peace day or night. You who make mention of the Lord, do not keep silent,
- Psalms 63:6When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches.
- Psalms 127:1Unless the Lord builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the Lord guards the city, The watchman stays awake in vain.
- Habakkuk 2:1I will stand my watch And set myself on the rampart, And watch to see what He will say to me, And what I will answer when I am corrected.
Commentaries on Isaiah 21:8
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 8And he cried, A lion "He that looked out on the watch" - The present reading, אריה aryeh, a lion, is so unintelligible, and the mistake so obvious, that I make no doubt that the true reading is הראה haroeh, the seer; as the Syriac translator manifestly found it in his copy, who renders it by דקוא duka, a watchman.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8And he cried, A lion - Margin, As a lion.‘ This is the correct rendering. The particle כ (k ) - as,‘ is not unfrequently omitted (see Isaiah 62:5; Psalm 11:1). That is, I see them approach with the fierceness, rapidity, and terror of a lion (compare Revelation 10:3). My lord, I stand continually upon the watch-tower - This is the speech of the watchman, and is addressed, not to Yahweh, but to him that appointed him. It is designed to show the “diligence”…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 88. A lion--rather, "(The watchman) cried, I am as a lion"; so as is understood (Is 62:5; Psa 11:1). The point of comparison to "a lion" is in Re 10:3, the loudness of the cry. But here it is rather his vigilance. The lion's eyelids are short, so that, even when asleep, he seems to be on the watch, awake; hence he was painted on doors of temples as the symbol of watchfulness, guarding the place (Hor. Apollo) [Horsley].Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 21:8
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 21
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries